tonight, the race against time in the search for possible survivors of the deadly building collapse in surfside, florida. the death toll climbing. at least 11 people now confirmed dead. 150 still unaccounted for. searching teams combing through every square inch of rubble, tunneling through the debris, looking for possible signs of life. buses bringing families back to the search area. the investigation into the tragedy moves forward. an engineer report cli raising concerns years before the disaster, finding structural damage at the complex back in 2018. the mayor of miami-dade county vowing to get to the bottom of why the building collapsed. also making headlines tonight, record-shattering heat in the west. portland, oregon, hitting new triple digit highs on back-to-back days.

the new heat wave now building in the northeast. and as we come on the air tonight, tropical storm danny making landfall in south carolina. rob marciano tracking it all for us. news tonight about the pandemic. a new study finds the pfizer and moderna vaccines may offer protection for years, even before antibodies start to fade. the highly con stay use delta variant spreading across the states and threadening thousands of unvaccinated americans. overseas tonight, president biden ordering a second round of air strikes on iranian-backed militias. martha raddatz just back from the region. her exclusive interview with the american commander overseeing the u.s. military withdrawal from afghanistan as the taliban gains ground. former attorney general bill barr blasting former president trump's false claims of widespread election fraud. barr, in the bluntest way possible, telling jonathan karl none of it was true. news tonight about the tourist shot in new york city's times square. how police are now responding. and simone biles is ready for the olympics.

good evening and it's great to have you with us on this monday night. i'm linsey davis, in for david. we begin with the condo collapse in surfside, florida. the massive search and rescue operation, the largest non-hurricane disaster response the state has ever seen. and the anguished wait for the families of the missing, now five days into the operation. massive cranes now working at the site, helping to lift the debris, pulling large pieces of concrete off the pile. crews have also carved a 125-foot trench underneath. they have located voids, empty spaces, but so far, no one has been found inside them. some of the family members traveling on buses today to hold a vigil at the site. and the faces of the loved ones

that are still holding out hope that they will see them again. the investigation continues on how this could happen. a troubling engineering report from 2018 found major structural damage to the concrete below the pool deck as well as cracked columns in the parking garage. abc's victor oquendo leads us off tonight from surfside. >> reporter: tonight, an 11th body recovered from the rubble of the devastating condo collapse in surfside, florida. but rescuers refusing to give up. >> we're going to continue and work ceaselessly to exhaust every possible option in our search. >> reporter: images showing the desperate search for survivors. 150 people still unaccounted for. and the mission is dangerous. a worker falling 25 feet into the mangled debris. rescuers digging a 125-foot long trench to try to get to possible survivors below. >> there's certain areas we have not gotten to, but we've been able to place cameras that seem to have large enough spaces, voids, that occupants may still be in there.

>> reporter: crews hopeful that as the building pancaked down, pockets of air or voids could have formed in the rubble, boxing in survivors. >> when you have that type of collapse, the building literally lands on top of each other and it doesn't create any pockets. that doesn't mean there's not a refrigerator that could have created a pocket or a hole and where someone could be alive. >> reporter: rescuers finding some of those voids. but unfortunately, nobody inside. >> as the days go by with the additional equipment and machinery that we have, it gives us more hope that we'll be able to access those voids and make those rescues. >> reporter: this is the state's largest non-hurricane disaster response ever. it's just about noon here in surfside. the teams that have been working on top of the pile have been there for 12 hours, since midnight. they are now coming off. this is one of the first stops they have to make. this is the decontamination station. and tonight, more chilling accounts from that horrific night. what unit were you in? >> 705. if i'm in 704, i'm dead. >> reporter: steve rosenthal was asleep in his apartment when the building started collapsing.

>> it's 1:30 in the morning and i hear the loudest thunderclap i've ever heard in my life. >> reporter: he remembers the cries for help from his neighbors. >> people are yelling, help me, help me, get me out. >> reporter: his arms are still bruised from that night. he's now filing a lawsuit against the condo association. a 2018 engineering report warned there was major structural damage to the concrete under the pool deck, as well as cracking in the columns in the parking garage. abc news confirming residents were assured by a surfside building official the tower was in very good shape. engineers looking at this disturbing video frame by frame, showing the collapse. >> when i look at the video, i feel it looks like it starts from the bottom of the building and works its way up or a failure concentrated at the support of the bottom of the building. >> that video could prove key in this investigation. victor oquendo joins us once again from the scene. today, the mayor of miami-dade

county vowed to get to the bottom of why the building collapsed. victor, what are you now learning about the concerns at the sister buildings? >> reporter: linsey, the residents there are concerned. we have been told that the parking garages of the north and east towers have been inspected and despite some huge chunks of concrete missing from columns in the east tower, both buildings have been deemed safe. no evacuations have been ordered, but some residents have chosen to evacuate. linsey? >> victor, thank you. and now to the families still hoping for a miracle. they are holding onto one another as they wait. some getting the heartbreaking news that they feared, but so grateful to have answers. abc's stephanie ramos on that part of the story tonight. >> reporter: tonight, as rescuers carefully sift through that wreckage for any signs of life, the meticulous process compounding the suffering for families hoping for a miracle. >> it is very difficult to know that your loved one could still be alive and have the hope to believe that and at the same

time, just sit there and wait for that information to get to you. >> reporter: for the second day, buses taking relatives of the missing to the site of the collapsed tower. this coming amid criticism from some frustrated relatives about the pace of the rescue effort. how do they feel about the from officials and now that they do have the opportunity to go down to the site and see the wreckage? >> well, their reaction is about this and some people want to go, they want to be there. they need to be there. and others are scared. >> reporter: but as those families wait in anguish, some answers for the loved ones of anna ortiz and her son luis bermudez, whose deaths were confirmed overnight. her sister telling me the two were found together. >> my nephew had muscular dystrophy, so he couldn't move. so i know for sure that when the alarm went off, she ran to him, >> reporter: anna's husband and two other relatives who were in the building at the time of the collapse are still unaccounted for.

her mother clutching the hand of a family member, saying the loss of anna and luis has destroyed her, but that it is a process she now has to go through. >> such a grieving process still for many ahead, perhaps. stephanie joins us live from surfside, where she's been covering the families of the missing. stephanie, give us a sense of what you've been witnessing as far as how the families are coping. >> reporter: well, linsey, we have seen it first-hand, families are experiencing a range of emotions. they are grieving, they are angry and there's nothing they can do but wait. state and local officials today emphasizing that they are searching for their loved ones and they are not slowing down. linsey? >> stephanie, thank you. we'll have more on the outpouring of support for the families later in the broadcast. but there is other major news this monday night. the record-shattering and dangerous heat in parts of the west, as a heat wave bakes in the east, as well. and a newly formed tropical storm is about to slam ashore. abc's senior meteorologist rob

marciano is tracking it all for us. > reporter: tonight, the dome of heat engulfing the northwest is at its peak. after shattering records across the region, many of them all-time highs. portland had its hottest day ever on saturday. that record shattered 24 hours later, when sunday's high hit 112 degrees. >> that is life-threatening heat. but for portlanders, early in the summer, before we've had a chance to really get used to hot weather, that is really a public health threat. >> reporter: the heat melting these streetcar power cables in portland. and buckling this highway in everson, washington, forcing officials to shut it down. many homes and businesses in the northwest don't even have air conditioning. in seattle, locals are flocking to hotels. >> i've lived all over, from southern virginia to mississippi to los angeles and i've never had to do this in my life. >> reporter: the heat fueling fires across the west. one firefighter injured fighting the peak fire that broke out today in southern california.

we had another all-time record in portland, 115 degrees. 116 in salem. this is a climate change-amplified heat wave that will moderate some tomorrow, but this blocking pattern has heat waves on both coasts. the one in the northeast is going to stay with us. temperatures are going to feel like up and over 100 degrees. so, we have excessive heat warnings and heat advisories for all the big cities. tropical storm danny off the south carolina coast, just 30 miles away from charleston. 45 mile about hour winds, not very strong. it will come onshore tonight and weaken quickly, but it will drive inland and bring some rain all the way to atlanta. linsey? >> and just some oppressive heat for us. rob, thank you. now, to the coronavirus tonight. a new study suggests that the pfizer and moderna vaccines might offer protection for years, even without a booster shot. but variants remain a wild card. the delta variant now identified in 49 states and especially dangerous to those who are not vaccinated. tonight, 179 million people have had at least one dose, that's 63% of everyone 12 years and older. abc's elwyn lopez is at the cdc.

>> reporter: tonight, promising research suggesting the pfizer and moderna vaccines could offer protection for years, even after antibodies start to fade. >> these data suggest that some level of immunity will be long lasting. how that translates into actual protection, i think remains to be determined. >> reporter: the new findings could mean people who got an mrna vaccine might not need a booster shot every year. but the wild card is the ever-changing virus. the highly contagious delta variant spreading to 49 states. and threatening the unvaccinated. >> those individuals that we are still seeing that are not vaccinated and taking a lot longer hospital stay. >> reporter: hospital admissions now climbing in at least five states with lower vaccination rates. after putting off the vaccine, covid landed louie michael and his wife patti in a missouri hospital. >> i hope people do think about getting the vaccination. it's your prerogative, but i

wish i had done it just to avoid this. >> reporter: now both are at home, on a slow mend. and linsey, louie tells me tonight that his wife is still on oxygen at home. as for booster shots, health experts say those who at most risk would be the first ones to get them if needed. linsey? >> elwyn, thank you. overseas tonight, president biden ordering a second round of air strikes on iran-backed militias near the border of iraq and syria. abc's martha raddatz is just back from an extensive trip to the region, including iran. and martha, what's the administration saying is the reason for the air strikes? >> reporter: well, linsey, it's been a real back and forth. u.s. fighter jets struck at least three different targets near the border after those iranian-backed militias launched small, commercially available drones armed with mortars at u.s. bases. then the militias launched rockets at a u.s. base. and just a short time ago, the u.s. fired artillery back at the

militias. >> martha, you were also in afghanistan, where you had an exclusive interview with the american commander overseeing the u.s. military withdrawal. what's the situation there? >> reporter: i think it will be just a matter of weeks before the u.s. is out of afghanistan, even as the taliban gains ground. general scott miller is the longest-serving commander in america's longest war. we are flying over bagram airfield, once home to 38,000 u.s. troops. now nearly abandoned. the fighter jets gone. nearly everything gone. some of this equipment has been here for nearly 20 years. every unit that arrived, bringing more and more. but now, every day, at least 15 massive cargo jets fly it out of here. >> the war started before i was born. so it's, like, crazy that i get to be here to close it down. >> reporter: so far, the massive movement of troops and equipment has gone flawlessly. but it is what comes next that is deeply unsettling.

the taliban is sweeping through the country. a warning -- this graphic video obtained by abc news shows what we are told are afghan government troops in the north, hands up in surrender -- being massacred by the taliban. how alarmed are you? >> the loss of terrain and the rapidity of that loss of terrain has to be concerning. we're starting to create conditions here that doesn't -- won't look good for afghanistan in the future if there is a push for a military takeover. >> reporter: i've talked to a lot of afghans. they're very concerned that the taliban will move into kabul. how likely is that? >> if you go back to what the taliban's objectives are, they want to take over. you know, that implies at some point, they are in kabul. >> reporter: burned into miller's memory, what happened after the u.s. withdrawal from iraq in 2011, when isis then stormed the country. >> i mean, that's on everybody's mind.

>> reporter: we can't be certain we won't be back here. >> no. you never can be certain that you won't be back. >> reporter: but the general says whatever happens in afghanistan, those who served should be proud of what they have accomplished. linsey? >> martha, thank you. now to former attorney general william barr, what he's now saying about former president trump's claims of election fraud and what it was leik inside that explosive meeting when the former president confronted his a.g. here's abc's chief washington correspondent jonathan karl. >> reporter: bill barr was seen as one of trump's most loyal cabinet secretaries. but in a series of exclusive interviews, he tells me donald trump's claims of election fraud are "b.s." >> if i found something, you know, i had no motive to suppress it. but my suspicion all the way along was that there was nothing there. it was all [ bleep ]. >> reporter: barr told me he had conducted his own informal inquiry. even talking to cyber security experts at the department of homeland security and the fbi

about allegations that voting machines were rigged. they found nothing. >> you can tell me all you want to about, you know, how this could have been hacked or whatever. but it's a counting machine. so you just reconcile the two. there's a pile right there. how many ballots? 1,000. now, let's see who they're for. there's been no discrepancy reported anywhere. >> reporter: barr was urged to speak up by then senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, who was worried about maintaining republican control of the senate. mcconnell said barr was the only person who could, quote, inject some reality into trump. on december 1st, barr publicly declared there was no evidence of widespread fraud. multiple sources who witnessed the president's reaction told me they had never seen him so angry. one said, "he had the eyes and mannerisms of a madman." "how the expletive could you do this to me? why did you say it?" trump demanded. "because it's true," barr replied. "you must hate trump," the president responded. "you must hate trump."

trump responded to my interview with barr with a lengthy statement, went on for some three pages, attacking barr as, quote, a disappointment in every sense of the word. he also harshly criticized mitch mcconnell, calling him, quote, another beauty. linsey? >> once again trump not holding back. jon, thank you. and a victory for transgender rights tonight. the supreme court let stand a lower court ruling that found a school's transgender bathroom ban to be unconstitutional. the decision affirmed the right of former virginia high school student gavin grimm to use the boy's bathroom. the gloser county school board had forced him to use a private bathroom. and when we come back, news tonight about the tourist shooting in new york's times square. how police are responding.

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caught in the middle of an argument between vendors. a 4-year-old girl was also shot and wounded in times square last month. a landmark settlement involving e-cigarette giant juul labs. the company now agreeing to pay north carolina $40 million. juul is accused of targeting young people with deceptive and unfair marketing campaigns to attract them to use their vaping products. juul denies any wrongdoing. when we come back, simone biles soaring her way back into the olympics. because of the name on the tailgate. it's an f-150 because it's built ford tough. built to haul more. built to tow more. for the people who count on it. because they know that brawn can get the job done, but it takes brains and brawn to get it done right. tough this smart can only be called f-150.

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landscape. >> i'm having two days i cannot sleep because this tragedy. >> leo soto from miami has two friends from champlain towers south who are missing. he organized this makeshift memorial on friday. >> just seeing how people are walking up to the memorial, adding their own flowers, adding little post-it notes of personal sayings to make people feel better, it's incredibly heartwarming. because it really does feel like it's helping. >> creating a space for the community to come together to grieve. >> my emotions have gone from just utter sadness, devastation, shock, to a sense of hope and a sense of community and belief willethrough this. together, >> getting through it together. thank you so much for watching. i'm linsey davis. hope to see you right back here tomorrow night. for david and all of us here, good night for david and all of us here, good night.

[speaking foreign language] >> you owe $3,000? >> [speaking foreign language] >> while politicians talk policy on rent protection, its people like maria who will feel the practical effects of their decisions. she's lost her apartment and this hotel is the last stop before she and her family are homeless. plus 7 on your side joins us. for the first time in a long time it is an he shows you the incentives. at one point the bathroom

ceiling caved in but this hotel room remains no one san francisco family who couldn't keep up with rent on their apartment during the pandemic. >> you said that you had to move to this hotel because this is the only thing you can afford at that time. >> [speaking foreign language] >> good evening and thank you for joining us. >> you are watching abc 7 news at 6:00 live here on abc 7, hulu live and wherever you happen to stream. >> we talk about building a better by area we are talking about myth -- making it better for people like maria. >> now there is hope. in the last few hours we learned the state assembly passed a to help struggling renters. abc 7 news reporter spoke to local officials about what needs to be done at the state and the local level to help these families. she joins us live